Recorded at Bolic Sound, March 20, 1973 and Whitney Studios, May 1973
Remixed by Craig Parker Adams, Winslow Ct. Studios, 2023
None of the vintage mixes found in the vault contained Sal's voice or trumpet. Imagine the surprise once the 16-Track master was transferred! It warranted a new remix.
2-Track Master
3/4 of this early take-home mix is an alternate take which FZ eventually decided against for the master version.
From 15:22 of the latest episode of Zappacast, they talked about the string instrument that FZ played on X-Forts (Echidna's Arf (Of You)). Joe mentioned three possibilities: bouzouki, 12-string electric guitar or fretless guitar. I'm inclined to think that it's 12-string, because:
1. The lowest note in this recording is E2, which is also the lowest note in the standard tuning of a 12-string guitar.
2. It seems that all of FZ's parts were played in parallel harmony. In other words, he always played two notes together.
3. The interval is a 5th in the lower register. For example, E2 is always accompanied with A2 B2 (a 5th above).
4. On the other hand, the interval is a 4th in the higher register. For example, the highest note of the guitar in this recording is E5, which is always accompanied with B4 (a 4th below).
5. Therefore, it seems to me that FZ used a 12-string guitar with some sort of alternate tuning, which had the higher pairs of strings tuned to the interval of a 4th, while having the lower pairs of strings tuned to the interval of a 5th.
6. Based on my analysis, I came up with a hypothetical tuning, which tuned down all of the extra strings in the standard 12-string tuning.
The standard 12-string tuning is:
E3-E2 A3-A2 D4-D3 G4-G3 B3-B3 E4-E4My hypothetical tuning is:
B2-E2 E3-A2 A3-D3 D4-G3 F#3-B3 B3-E4IMO, this is similar to the alternate tuning of bouzouki in Canard Du Jour, which also tuned down all of the extra strings in the standard tuning. (And in The Ocean Is The Ultimate Solution, FZ would take a more radical approach to the 12-string tuning, which is a kind of hybrid of his previous alternate tunings.)
Using this alternate tuning, I transcribed the main riff (0:08-1:03) and the beginning of the guitar solo (3:59-4:25):
http://www.ne.jp/asahi/studio/tan/zappa/ocean/xforts_sample.pdf (PDF)
http://www.ne.jp/asahi/studio/tan/zappa/ocean/xforts_sample.mid (MIDI)For transcribing, I used an obsolete software called Power Tab Editor, which can't handle this kind of complicated 12-string tuning. So I split the 12 strings to two guitars; "Gtr 1" is for main strings (E2 A2 D3 G3 B3 E4), and "Gtr 2" is for extra strings (B2 E3 A3 D4 F#3 B3). Therefore, fingerings are the same on both staves.
I think that in terms of the finger movements on the fretboard, this transcription makes sense. Any opinions?
Note: When transcribing the guitar solo, I had no idea how to notate the rhythm against the basic beat. As a result, I just ignored all of the other instruments and focused only on the guitar. After all, the aim of this guitar tab is not to make an accurate transcription of the rhythms, but to explain my hypothetical tuning. So, please forgive me for my laziness.
2-Track Master
Players: FZ—Guitar, Vocal
Unknown—Bass
Unknown—Rhythm Guitar
Unknown—Drums
Recorded at Paramount Studios, 12-19-72
Mixed by FZ & Kerry McNabb, Paramount Studios, December 1972
There is no documentation that lists the musicians on this obscure track. When listening to the multitrack master, you can hear there is a rhythm guitar player, bass player and drummer tracking in real-time with FZ on guitar and vocals. It's possible the rhythm guitar is Tony Duran and the bass player could be Dave Parlato, but the drums are a mystery as the sound of the overall drum kit is not reminiscent of Jim Gordon or Ralph Humphrey.
The first reel ran out during the first St. Alfonzo's Pancake Breakfast. A patch created from Annapolis, MD (5-19-73) joins the two reels together to cover the missing audio.
All compositions by Frank Zappa except as noted